Burning Curse
by Jhayk' sulliy
Summary: Long ago, a young Princess Celestia banished an evil fire demon to the farthest realms of the astral heavens. He swore his revenge, yet Celestia did not heed it. Now he's back. Not a direct continuation of The Greatest Adventure, but the same story line.
1. Entrapment

Prologue: Entrapment

"Never again!" Dante could see the hatred, the malice, and the contempt in the eyes of a pony he thought he'd never see such emotion from. "Never again! Never shall thou hurt our family! Never again shall thou endanger our home!" Princess Celestia fumed, "Look! Look what thou hast done, Dante!" Dante knew she was right, but he once again felt anger welling inside of him. "_I must keep calm." _Dante thought to himself. Anger would only bring more fire. Yet he still could not help feeling the slightest twinge of pride in his ifrit self. As Jinn of the flame, he could not help but enjoy the blaze taking place behind him.

"I do not see what is wrong here" spoke the infernal ifrit.

"Thou do not?" Screamed Celestia unable to believe what she was hearing. "You attack the Royal Castle, set the forest surrounding it ablaze, and then burn our Sister!" screamed Celestia, as she felt tears welling in her eyes. She just prayed that she had reached her sisters' bed chamber in time.

"We have no compassion left for you. You force us to do this" shuddered Celestia, summoning six multicolored orbs, she was still quite worried. She had never performed the task of Astral Banishment, but what Dante has done was irredeemable.

"No! Celestia, please. You don't understand!" cried, Dante in his last hope for redemption.

"Don't I?" shrieked the alicorn. "Upon your crimes this night, we have found reports coming to our ears, reports that I ignored out of hope that they might not be true, of your attempts to horde power, and raise an army to overthrow us. We have no other choice". It was then that Celestia rose up into the air and declared,

"DANTE! IFRIT ALICORN AND ROYAL MILITARY STRATEGIST! FROM THIS NIGHT, THOU HAST BEEN HENCEFORTH BANISHED FROM THE EARTH!"

In one move, Celestia activated the Elements of Harmony, and shot their power towards Dante. From the blackness, Dante could be heard rumbling, "I shall return! Mark my words, Celestia, I shall return more powerful and dangerous than ever. I will be your greatest adversary!" Then quiet. No sound, but for the howls of the animals being cooked alive inside the towering inferno that was once the beautiful and wondrous Everfree Forest.

Present Day…Ponyville

It was night; all the little Ponies were asleep in their beds. They had no idea, that at that very moment, the moon was turning blood red. As if the white wasteland was somehow turning itself into an orb of molten magma. One pony, however, was awake. The prized pupil and representative of the Element of Magic herself was up at this most ungodly hour to view one of the heaven's most unique events: a Lunar Eclipse. Had most ponies been awake at this time, they would have viewed the event as some kind of dark and powerful magic that was possibly hurting their Princess Luna. Not Twilight Sparkle. She saw the event as a scientific matter, and believed that even the strangest events could be explained logically. Well, except for one. Twilight didn't even want to remember the pain she endured while trying to uncover the secrets of "Pinkie Sense".

Suddenly amongst snoring of Twilights' young draconic assistant, Spike, Twilight heard the sound of a belch. Thinking nothing of it, Twilight went back to her telescope only to find the Lunar eclipse was ending. Disappointed, yet excited that she got to view it at all, Twilight decided to call it a night and go to bed. Replacing the cap back onto the telescope, Twilight turned her back to find a scroll lying next to the sleeping form of Spike.

"Hmmm, what would the Princess require at this time of n…" Twilight stopped, took a quick look at the clock, "uh I mean morning?" Twilight corrected herself, seeing it as already past two a.m. This was a time when Princess Celestia should have been sleeping.

Opening the letter, Twilight found an odd feature. This letter was not from Princess Celestia. Indeed the hoofwriting was similar, yet at the bottom of the piece of parchment, was the signature of Princess Luna. Reading the letter, worry quickly spread across Twilight's face. Luna had not asked, but clearly ordered Twilight to round up the rest of her friends and report to Canterlot Castle immediately.

"Spike! Spike, wake up!" Twilight said in a hoarse whisper, before adding an impatient, "NOW!"

"Huh? What? Twilight, what the hay? It's like two in the morning or something" grumbled Spike as he rolled back over and tried to return to sleep.

"Spike, you must get up! It's an emergency!"

"Come back when it's a catastrophe."

"Spike! Up!" ordered Twilight, who then used her magic to levitate the basket holding the sleeping dragon and overturn it, spilling its contents in an angry fit.

"Alright, alright! I'm up. Now what's so urgent that you had to wake me up at this time of night?" moaned Spike, rubbing the sleep from his eyes.

"I have just received a letter for Princess Luna, and she-"

"Don't you mean Princess Celestia?" interrupted Spike, "Seriously, Twi' I think you are just a little over tired" said Spike, as he put his forefinger and thumb together in a pinching gesture.

"No, I'm not overtired Spike! And you need to send a letter to all of our friends. She made it quite clear in her address that they were needed too."

"Uh oh! Twilight, do you think Discord escaped again?" asked Spike, clearly frightened. Last time Discord escaped, Princess Celestia had sent so many letters through Spike that he had actually wished, for the first time in his life, that he wasn't a dragon.

"Alright, the letters are written. Send them."

"Now?"

"Of course."

"But Twilight, everypony in Ponyville is sleeping."

"Spike! The Princess ordered me to gather everypony and report to Canterlot immediately!"

"Fine, but ya know that Dewey is gonna be scared when you just up and disappear, leaving him with a newborn foal."

"Spike, he knows I can take care of myself. Still, I probably should leave a letter. As for you, start sending those letters."

"Yes ma'am!" saluted Spike.

* * *

><p>"Uh, Twilight? What the hay is going on!" groaned Rainbow as she marched into the Library as quietly as she could, which for a pegasus would mean fluttering before landing with a soft tap.<p>

"Yeah Twilight this is waaaay too early to be waking everypony up. Even for me" cried Pinkie Pie, as she lumbered though the door.

"Shoot, ya got that right, partner" croaked Applejack, who had not even bothered with combing her mane and even left her trademark Stetson back on her and Sonny's' bedpost back at Sweet Apple Acres. Sunny Dee, Applejack, and their daughter Peach Mango were the ones managing the orchard now. Big Macintosh had long ago moved in with Fluttershy once their earth pony daughter, Apple Forest.

"Ugh! I'll never stay beautiful if I am awakened at this hour" huffed Rarity as pranced into the

"I don't wanna argue, but they are right Twilight, why are we here s-s-so early?" whispered Fluttershy, as she suppressed a yawn.

"Because the Princess ordered us to be in Canterlot as soon as we could."

At the mention of the word 'princess' Rainbow shot up immediately. "Well then, what are we waiting for? Princess Celestia needs us!"

"Rainbow, this letter wasn't sent by Princess Celestia it. It was Princess Luna who contacted me."

"Oh. Well we still gotta go! A princess is a princess."

"Rainbow, keep it down" whispered Twilight as she pointed up stairs, indicating her newborn unicorn filly still asleep upstairs.

"I'll teleport us all to the edge of Canterlot, we'll walk to the Castle from there" said Twilight, as she started concentrating on the required spell.

"Are ya sure you can really do that without hurtin' yerself, Sugarcube?" asked Applejack.

"I think so. I've been practicing with Dewey, Spike, and I. So I figure that if I can get two fully grown ponies and a dragon from here to Canterlot with no effort, it shouldn't be too hard with six adult mares."

"I don't know, it sounds dangerous. Maybe we should…" started Fluttershy, before being cut off by Twilight.

"It's fine. I can do this" said Twilight as a sudden bright white light engulfed all six of them and they disappeared in a flash, leaving behind a slightly smoldering scorch mark.

*POOF* "Uhhhh, toldya I could get us heeere" slurred Twilight as she swayed back and forth on the spot. "I don't think I will be doing any magic until sunrise though."

"Well, shall we continue then?" Rarity spoke up as they started along the cobblestone street.

"Strange, I haven't heard a word from Pinkie since she stepped into the library" noticed Rarity. Twilight, Rainbow, Rarity, Applejack, and Fluttershy looked back to see Pinkie snoring, right in the spot they had just teleported into.

"I'll wake her" boasted Rainbow Dash, flying over to hover above her sleeping pink friend. Poking Pinkie Pie in the rump, the party ponies' head shot up so quickly that Rainbow was surprised it didn't catapult itself right off her body.

"I'm up! I'm up! Oooo, we're in Canterlot! How'd we get here? Are we meeting the princess? Oooo, Applejack you really should have combed your mane. I mean, seriously you have got like total bedhead!" rambled off the just sleeping pony.

"Ugh, just follow us Pinkie, we'll fill you in on the way" said Twilight Sparkle, pointing her hoof in the direction of the Castle.

"Princess Luna, we came as soon as we could" announced Twilight as she burst through the doors to the royal throne room. When the six entered, they were surprised to find not just Princess Luna, but Princess Celestia as well.

"Twilight, it is good to see you" spoke the alicorn of the night.

"My little ponies, it is unfortunate for me to bear such grave news at this hour. However, a being has escaped from his imprisonment. A being far more treacherous than any foe you have been forced to face alone. I had foolishly believed him to have been locked away forever, but on this night, the night of the first Lunar eclipse in millennia, Dante has escaped."


	2. The Beginning of the End

Ch. 1 The Beginning of the End:

A murmur of misunderstanding broke across the six friends.

Celestia took notice, and the room fell silent as she spoke, "Let me explain. This was a time, shortly before the time of the arrival of Discord, and Luna and I's, short ostracization from Equestria. You see, it was just a short time after the founding of Equestria by the three races, that our parents, Luna and mines, had arrived from a land far away. They were the last of their race, and so took shelter in Equestria, hoping to find peace here. But when they entered these lands, they were seen as the perfect combination of the three races, and so were unanimously elected as the ruling King and Queen."

Seeing her subjects, and Luna herself, starting to drift back to sleep, Celestia quickened her story, "Ahem, but many years later, when I was still young, and Luna still a filly, and Cadence just a newborn, our parents died under mysterious circumstances. It was never proven if it was murder, but I was suspicious. After Luna and I were given the throne, being the two oldest alicorns of our family, I made a character by the name of Dante, my High Royal General. I wanted to keep an eye on him, as he had been one of the suspects when our parents died. You see, Dante was an ifrit, a jinn of fire, with an aggressive attitude, who had taken the form of a dark alicorn after the death of our parents. I was this as a plea for the throne, and so kept an eye on him. However, with the royal duties my sister and I possessed, I am afraid to say I did not watch Dante as much as I should have.

One evening, when I came home from lowering the sun, and waiting for Luna to take her duties among the stars, I found a horrific sight. The castle inside the Everfree Forest, which at the time was a beautiful oasis rather than the dark, decrepit site it is now, burning. Around the inflamed structure, the rest of the forest had caught fire, and was too now engulfed in an inferno. Upon the grass, I had found Luna, and asked her what had happened. She told me that she had gotten most everypony out, but she could not find Cadence. Praying that I had not been too late; I flew into the already collapsing structure, yelling for my sister. When I heard her cries, I dashed to her and pulled her from the ruins before the rest of the structure started caving in upon us. As I flew out to retrieve Luna before the forest fire found her, I was horrified to find a figure of flame standing above her body. It was Dante. I knew immediately, only he could have done this. It was then that a group of my closest guards appeared behind him. They turned their weapons upon me. I had no choice, I-I…" Celestia then did something nopony ever thought they would see her do, she began sobbing.

"Princess, it is alight, if you do not wish to continue the story" said Twilight, consoling the Princess.

"No, Twilight, it is quite alright" responded the Princess, as she then continued the tale, "After I had…disposed, of the guards, I turned to my sisters grabbed them, and flew off to the direction of what would one day be Ponyville, but then was only a grassy plain. Looking back, I found Dante landing behind me. Confronting him, I summoned the element from the ruins of the burning castle, and banished him to the farthest reaches of the astral realms. It seems, however, that he has found a way to escape, through the use of a celestial occurrence that hasn't appeared in millennia."

"So, we have to go after him?" asked Rainbow Dash, jumping up and standing posed to fight.  
>"No, my little ponies"<p>

"WHAT?" shouted the six, not believing what they were hearing. "But, yer majesty, we are the Elements of Harmony, it's our job ta take care of fiends like these"

"I admire your honesty, little Applejack, but this foe is unlike any you have ever faced before. I am afraid that Luna, Cadence, and I shall have to face him ourselves. We'll draw up battle plans, and confront him then. Dangers like these require subtly and long deliberation. Now, Luna and I must go meet with our advising council. Though we possess knowledge centuries beyond our years, we still like to keep the Royal military adviser in the know, just in case. Now Twilight, can you have Spike send a letter to your sister-in-law to meet us here?"

"What? Go home? Princess, I insist that we stay and help" responded Twilight.

"Oh no, my little pony, I could never ask you to stay up so long. Deliberations like these can take day"

"But Princess, we want to stay."

"I don't. Sorry Twi, but I'm tired. Princess Celestia is right, everything will work out fine" said Rainbow Dash, as she spoke through heavy lidded eyes."

"Yes, Twilight dear, many of us have w-w-work in the morning" Rarity spoke through her hoof as she covered a yawn.

"And Ah'm sure our loved ones are wonderin' where we went to in the middle of the night" suggested Applejack.

Everypony looked for something to come from Pinkie, but looking over, they all noticed she was fast asleep again.

"See? Now, if you don't mind, I'll be sending you all back, seeing as Twilight might not have the strength to do so herself."

"Thank you Princess" Twilight said gratefully, not feeling as if she could teleport six ponies back to Ponyville. With a blinding flash of white light, Twilight and her friends were gone from the spot and reappeared gracefully back in the Library, at which point a loud snore came from Pinkie Pie and she suddenly woke back up.

"Huh? I thought we were going to go see the Princess."

"Pinkie, darling, did you sleep through the entirety of the Princess' story?" asked Rarity.

"Uhhhh…" Pinkie said, rubbing the back or her head, "Yes?"

Twilight, Rainbow, Rarity, Fluttershy, and Applejack spent of the rest of the morning, until the sun rose, retelling Celestia's tale of Dante, and the order that they were to continue their life as normal, until they were called upon by one of the Princesses.

"So wait, you're telling me, that the Princess told you guys to send a letter to Twilight's sister-in-law, but haven't done it yet?" giggled Pinkie as she realized their mistake, causing the other's faces to droop in utter surprise.

"Uh, hehe, oops" said Twilight, "Hold on, I'll get right on that."

Twilight then tiptoed up the stairs, as so not to wake anypony else and gently tried awoke Spike. It was his time to get up, anyway. "Spike, Spiiiike" Twilight whispered, "Spiiiike, time to get up now."

"Hmmm? Oh, morning Twilight."

"Shhh, Spike come with me, I have something important to for you to do."

"Uh, sure, okay Twilight."

Coming back down the stairs, Twilight grabbed a quill and ink from a nearby table, and a sheet of parchment from another. Writing the letter explaining the situation, Twilight rolled up the scroll, and gave it to Spike.

"Now Spike, I need to you send this to Princess Cadence."

"Now Twilight? She's probably asleep."

"Even more the reason to send it now. She doesn't know what has happened yet."

"Why, what's happened? Has Equestria been invaded by zombies?"

"No Spike, nothing like that. Just send the letter and I'll tell you everything." Twilight reassured her assistant.

After Spike sent the letter, Twilight sat Spike down and told Spike what the Princess had told them.

"So, the Princess doesn't want you help in this? But you guys are the Elements of Harmony; she'll need you if she is to send Dante back into banishment."

"Ohm, I think she just doesn't need us for the planning stages right now, I'm sure she'll call us back when she needs us. Now, I suggest we all get back to bed, at least for now. We've been up all night." There was a sound of agreement behind Twilight.

At this, the six went their separate ways, Applejack to sweet Apple Acres, Fluttershy, back to her cottage with Big Macintosh, Rarity back to her boutique, Pinkie Pie back to Sugarcube Corner, Rainbow Dash back to her Sky, and Twilight lumbered back to her bed with Dewey.

* * *

><p>"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Screams were heard across Ponyville, but they originated from four key locations: an apple farm, a cloud home, a cottage on the edge of Everfree, and a library. Suddenly, the doors to Ponyville Library burst open off its hinges, as eight frantic ponies galloped into the main room, Twilight and Dewey included.<p>

They were in a state of panic, before Twilight teleported herself onto the table in the center, and spoke up, through muffled sobs. "Ev-everyp-pony! P-p-please! Ca-calm d-down, now!"

"Ah-Ah woke up, and she was g-gone!" sobbed Applejack, before shoving her face into her husband, Dewey's, shoulder- bawling.

"What the hay-happened! I w-went to get him up for school, and and…" Rainbow started out before breaking down.

"Ah can't believe this has happened! Whoever the hell took 'im is a dead man" spoke Big Mac, his voice radiating with rage, while Fluttershy on the other hand, had not said a word, but muffled cries could be heard from behind the pink mane covering her face.

"N-now, ev-ev-" was all Twilight could get out, before she slumped herself onto the table top, crying. From here, Dewey took over. "Now, everypony, we need to let Princess Celestia know about this, right away!"

"Ferget th-th-that! We need to find the bastard who d-done did this and b-bring 'im to justice!" sobbed Applejack, lifting her head from

"No! We need to t-tear him apart! I'll-I'll _kill_ him!"

"Rainbow, you'll do no such thing" interjected Sky, trying to stay calm, all the while the obvious marks of tears on his cheeks.

"Now people, this is exactly what we don't need happening. We need to stay calm, and think logically. We need to plan" said Dewey, trying to calm everyone down.

"The time for planning is over! We need to act!" shouted Rainbow dash, her magenta eyes possessing the look of murder in them.

"Plan!" shouted back Dewey.

"Act!"

"Plan!"

"Act!"

"Everypony, calm down!" shouted Twilight, once again standing upright on the table top. "I'm going to send Princess Celestia a letter, explaining everything, but for now, I need quiet so I can think."

"O-okay" whispered Fluttershy, the first word she had said all morning.

"My word, what ever has come over you ponies?" said Rarity, looking in from the busted in door way. This caused the already ecstatic parents to start rambling off to Rarity what had just happened.

"All right, all right. I do believe I understand" said Rarity as she was swarmed by the mob of distraught ponies.

"So everypony, I have written the letter, and had Spike send it" spoke up Twilight, behind the mob of ponies.

"Well now what?" asked Sunny.

"Now, I'm afraid we have no other option than…to wait" Twilight defeatedly said, hoping that the villain responsible for the mass kidnapping of the foals wasn't who she suspected it to be.

* * *

><p>"Now, if we attack the remains from this sector, and use the pegasi as an aerial team at the cliff fa-" the speaking pony looked up to notice that Princess Celestia was no longer paying attention to the war deliberations, but was rather looking at a scroll, your face contorted with a frown of utmost intensity.<p>

"If you may excuse me, Cadence, Luna, if you would so kindly accompany me for a private discussion" ordered Celestia, her voice carrying an unquestionable tone of concern.

Once they were alone, Cadence spoke up, "What is it, dear sister?"

"I-I am afraid there has been a terrible incidence. It has appeared, that the children of several Elements of Harmony have disappeared, kidnapped in the middle of the night. I have no doubt you know of my suspicions for who has committed such a heinous act."

"Dante" Princess Luna finished.

"Yes, and I fear that with their children at stake, my order for the Elements to wait for my order, will have become nullified. They will take rash action, I am sure of it."

"Sister, Twilight Sparkle is my sister-in-law, I am sure-"

"There is no need; those ponies will protect their foals, even if I do make a decree for them not to. We must wait this out, stepping in at the right moment" Celestia interrupted.

"Are you sure that is the wisest course, Tia?" Luna offered.

"With Dante, I am not sure what the wisest course is. I fear he may kill the foals, should their parents attempt to interfere. This was my fight. I had the power to end it long ago. This is my mistake."


	3. Feeding the Fire

Chapter 2. Feeding the Fire:

"What do you mean, Tia?" Princess Cadence asked.

"I mean, that this entire mess is my fault. Had I taken my responsibility to heart, and finished Dante when I had the chance rather than banishing him, we would not be in this mess.

"Tia, you cannot blame yourself for this. 'Twas long ago, I do not even remember much of that horrific night. A tower of flame, a heartless cackle, and then nothing" Princess Luna said, in an attempt to console her sister.

"Yes, but being the highest ruling authority, it is my duty to accept responsibility. We must call a meeting with the Elements immediately, before they take too brash of action. I will fetch them myself. Twilight Sparkle is an incredibly gifted unicorn, but even I will find trouble with teleporting nine ponies and myself between Ponyville and Canterlot. I'd send a balloon, but I hardly think they would all fit into such a device". With that, Princess Celestia lit up her horn in a glow of gold light, and vanished on the spot.

"Come Cadence, we must return to the Council for now, we have our duties to attend to. This has become much more serious than silly battle strategies. We need to converge a plan now that the Elements have been involved." Princess Luna ordered to her pink sister.

* * *

><p>As the nine ponies sat around in the Library, nothing was said. Nothing wanted to be said. There are no words that could express the sorrow of a parent perhaps losing their child forever. They just hoped they could find their foals before the unthinkable could happen.<p>

Among the sniffles and clinks of tea cups, a bright light appeared near the door of the library. Looking up from their red, tear stricken eyes, the ponies gave greetings filled with sorrow, not even bothering to bow before royalty as they would have found themselves so common to do.

"Good afternoon, Princess." Twilight Sparkle sobbed.

"Twilight, I need you and the other Elements of Harmony to come with me immediately" the Princess ordered.

"Where are we going, Princess?" Pinkie inquired, her main and tail gone flat.

"To Canterlot. You are to be given instruction from there" Celestia responded.

"Ooohhh. Okay"

"Now, if all nine of you will please huddle amongst my horn, we are going to teleport"

"Teleport, but Princess, isn't that dangerous with so many of us?" Twilight spoke up as she and the other eight ponies huddled up to her mentor's horn.

"Normally yes, however this is an emergency. Those of you that have never teleported before, I would suggest taking a deep breath. First time teleportations can be a rather…tangible experience."

And with that, Celestia's horn began to glow, and with a concerned glance between Sky, Big Macintosh, and Sunny, they found themselves no longer viewing the library. Instead, the three stallions felt as if all the air had been punched out of them, and they were going to be squeezed until their eye popped from their sockets. Instead, they found themselves touching down upon the white marble of the Throne Room.

Sky Rocket, Big Mac, and Sunny Dee collapsed upon the floor, in a mixture of recovering from the feeling of their first teleportation and, for Big Macintosh and Sunny anyway, never wanting to leave the ground again.

Celestia looked upon the males and suppressed a small giggle as they kissed the ground.

"I told you it was a unique experience, now come with me, there is work to be done."

As the ten ponies walked down the halls of the Castle, they couldn't help but be reminded of their dire situation when seeing the murals and staccato ceiling paintings depicting happy foals at play.

Celestia led them along a side corridor that Twilight had never been down before, and to a room with a rather drab appearing door large enough to let a fully grown alicorn like Celestia pass through comfortably. Entering through the doorway, they found the room was mostly occupied by three stern stallions dressed in armor not too different than the fake armor that Rainbow Dash wore when she played Commander Hurricane during the Hearth's Warming Eve pageant. Among the three stallions were Princesses Luna and Cadence, all of them looking flustered and somewhat irritated with the three stallions. Lining the walls of the room were maps of different parts of Equestria. The map depicting the Everfree Forest as laid out upon the table with magic lines drawn all over it, all the lines leading to one particular spot on the map, a spot that was all too familiar with the Elements and Luna herself.

"May I present my Council of Three. These are my highest ranking and most trusted Generals I command. Admiral Tomcat here, commands the Royal Airborne Legion," Celestia pointed to an armored pegasus in the far left. She then continued towards the right. "Commander Arlee Ermy here, commands the Royal Magic Corps, and General Pat Ton here commands the Royal Ground Forces." Celestia pointed out the Unicorn and the Earth ponies respectively.

"And here is where we believe Dante is holding the children captive," Tomcat spoke, his voice sounding like it had been partly blown away by air, which was likely due to his years of service in the Airborne Legion, "in the ruins of the old Royal Castle".

"We had plans of obliterating the piece of shit, but damn it, the bastard had to go and make things complicated for us." Arlee Ermy hammered out, with a very commanding voice.

"And so we have discussed matters and believe the best course of action would be to let the Elements of Harmony act, as it is their children who have been taken captive" General Pat Ton finished.

"As you can see Twilight," Princess Cadence spoke up, "matters like these are difficult. I know how much you just want to storm into the place and take your foals back, but matters such as these require finesse. This is why I am sending you in as negotiators. Just you. You will have the entire Royal Military backing when you go, but for now I need you to stay calm and with the plan we have achieved".

Celestia and Luna nodded with their sister's statement, then Celestia spoke, "I have full confidence in your abilities, but if you will come with me, we can gather the Elements and Luna, Cadence, and I will send you on your way."

With that, they Council of Three bode the pony's good luck and so they returned to the throne room where they entered.

"Now, this is where I leave you to be separat-"

"What!" shouted the nine ponies is unison.

"Ah'm sorry yer highness, but Ah ain't leavin' none of mah kin behind. Apples stick tagethar." Big Macintosh said, stamping his hoof down onto the floor with enough force to put a small crack in the marble.

"He's right, Princess. If Ah have ta fight this here demon, then Ah want my husband and mah broth-, mah _family_ fightin' there with me!" Applejack corrected herself, implying to everypony in the room.

"Very well, I guess it is only natural for friends as close as you to wish to fight together, and I have no right, well…being the Princess I have every right, I jus-"

"Princess!" Twilight yelled noticing the white alicorn starting to stall for time. "I know how much you care for us, but every second counts. We need to get going."

"Very well, follow me and then you will be on your way." Celestia resigned, as she led them down a large hall that Twilight knew held the Chamber of Elements at the end.

As the ten ponies stopped at the doors, Celestia inserted her horn into the hole in the middle, and with a golden glow, the doors swung open to reveal the chest that held the Elements. Since Discord had escaped, it appeared that Celestia had increased security around the chest. There was now a glowing golden aura, the same aura of Celestia's magic, which surrounded the chest in a dome as it sat upon a pedestal in the small closet.

Deactivating the protective aura, Celestia floated the chest over to Twilight and her friends, where she opened it and revealed the bejeweled Elements of Harmony within.

"I need you, all of you," Celestia said as she pointed a hoof at the ponies, "To accept the responsibility that has been thrust upon you to wield this great power against such a terrible foe."

"We get it, now hurry!" Rainbow Dash shouted, her patience at an end.

Celestia said nothing, but rather placed the Elements upon each bearer, and then stood back.

"I take it you understand what you need to do, after what you saw in the War Council?"

"Yes Princess, we understand, and we shall do our all to stop Dante". Rarity swore, before giving the Princess one last bow.

Suddenly, the ponies once again found themselves enveloped in a golden aura, and immediately found themselves back at the Library.

"What do we do now?" Dewey asked.

"Now, we confront Dante."

* * *

><p>Meh, shorter than I wanted, a lot shorter actually, but here seemed a good place to start.<p> 


End file.
